Royals Linked To $50 Million Slumping All-Star As Trade Deadline Nears

The outfield options at this year's Major League Baseball trade deadline aren't that great, which is tough news for the Kansas City Royals.

If the 47-50 Royals are going to turn things around in the second half, it starts with improved offensive performances at all three outfield positions. Royals outfielders have combined for an astonishing -2.9 fWAR so far this season; no other team is worse than -0.3.

On Sunday, an insider linked the Royals to a former All-Star outfielder, but despite the name value, it's not the game-changing addition Kansas City would need on paper.

Jon Heyman of the New York Post reported on Sunday that at least eight teams had checked in on Chicago White Sox center fielder Luis Robert, who is coming to the end of a $50 million extension this fall and is having a dreadful season at the plate.

Though Heyman didn't explicitly state that the Royals had called the White Sox, he did name them as a potential fit for the slugger in the very next sentence.

"Eight teams have checked in on talented but struggling CF Luis Robert Jr., and if the White Sox can trade him before confronting that $20M option decision, they need to do it," Heyman wrote.

"The Phillies, Dodgers, Padres, Royals and Mets look like potential fits. Some believe he’d regain form as a complementary player elsewhere."

Robert's .190/.275/.325 slash line is shocking to see from a player who popped 38 home runs in 2023. And while other teams might not need him to carry much of the load offensively, that's almost certainly what the Royals would be asking him to do.

If the Royals are going to buy, a swing like this is a necessary risk they'll have to take. But a bad week coming out of the All-Star break could also put all buying on the fritz.

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